American Character Dolls 1919-1968

1947 Pre Sweet Sue doll,  18"

all composition, doll is unmarked

The American Character company used the trade names Aceedeecee and ACDC, they made dolls of small rubber dolls, composition and later hard plastic and vinyl dolls. Also later (1961) the name American Doll & Toy Company was sometimes used.

In 1923 American Character trademarked the name Petite used on their early mama and character dolls.  Best known for the 1928 composition dolls; Campbell Kids, Puggy and Sally dolls, later noted dolls were the Tiny Tears and Betsy McCall dolls. 

American Character dolls were well made and had good quality costumes. American Character went out of business in 1968, doll molds were sold to Ideal; Tiny Tears, Tressy and the grow hair feature was used in Ideal's Crissy & family dolls.

1922-1930s American Character Mama dolls or Petite Baby dolls, 12, 16, 17, 20, 22, 24" tall, composition and cloth body molded hair or wigged, with sleep eyes, open or closed mouth, doll mark Amer. Char Doll Co, Petite, American Character, AC or Wonder Baby .  The 1922 12" size Baby Petite Mama doll, might have a voice box inside the head.

1930 Petite Mama doll, 24"

1925 American Character Baby Petite, 11-15" tall, Bye-Lo or Tynie Baby look a like, composition flange head, lightly molded painted hair, painted or sleep eyes, closed mouth, composition arms and straight lower legs, cloth stuffed body and upper legs, doll mark Baby Petite.

1925 American Character Baby Petite doll, 11-15"

1925 American Character Teenie Weenie doll, 11" tall, Bye-Lo or Tynie Baby look a like, composition flange head and lower arms, cloth stuffed body, upper arms and legs, composition head with lightly molded hair, sleep eyes, closed mouth, doll mark Teenie Weenie. 

Baby Petite and Teenie Weenie dolls are the same head molds with slightly different bodies, however with the name clearly marked on the neck, makes it easy to know the difference between them.

1925 American Character Teenie Weenie doll, 11"

1926 American Character Bottletot doll, 14" tall, Composition shoulder head, composition arms (her right hand is posed to hold a bottle) and cloth body with jointed cloth legs, blue tin sleep eyes, painted upper and lower lashes, painted molded hair and an open mouth, doll marked on back: Petite, America's Wonder Baby Dolls, tagged romper marked: BOTTLETOT, Reg US Pat Off, A Petite Doll.   

There are also dolls named Happy Tot doll, Marvel Tot doll and Toddle Tot doll - note, not all of these dolls have the right hand for holding a bottle.

1920s Bottletot doll, 14"

1927 American Character Happy Tot doll, 13-20" tall, composition shoulder head to below under arms, composition arms and straight legs or all cloth bent legs or partial composition lower  legs cloth upper bent legs,  cloth body, molded painted blonde hair, tin blue sleep eyes, open smiling mouth but no teeth, doll marked on back shoulder plate Petite, American Character Doll.  This head mold was also used for the Aviation Kid doll below.

1927 Happy Tot doll, 20"

1927 American Character Lucky Aviation Kid doll, 14" tall, Charles Lindbergh, see above right photo, uses the Happy Tot head mold, composition shoulder head to below under arms, composition arms and legs, cloth body, molded painted blonde hair, tin blue sleep eyes, open smiling mouth but no teeth, wears a brown aviator suit and flight cap, small red, white and blue "Spirit of St. Louis" model plane ribbon, white socks and brown shoes, doll marked on back shoulder plate; Petite, American Character Doll.

see above face photo

1927 Lucky Aviation Kid doll, 14" Charles Lindbergh doll

1928 American Character Campbell Kid doll,12" tall, all composition, molded short painted hair, painted side glancing eyes, designed by Grace G. Drayton, sometimes called Dolly Dingle after the paper dolls also designed by Grace Gebbie Wiederseim Drayton, doll marked:  A Petite Doll.  

E. I Horsman was also making the Campbell Kids dolls from 1910-1948.  

Photo is courtesy of Jane

1929 Campbell Kid doll, Girl 12"

1928 American Character Puggy doll, 12" tall, all composition, has a frowning face, smaller eyes and shorter molded hair than the others in the line, this is the boy doll in the Campbell Kids line, doll marked: A Petite Doll, on clothing label Puggy A PETITE DOLL.  

Photo on right is courtesy of Chris

1928 Puggy doll, 12"

1930s American Character Smiling Sally doll, 15" tall, all composition, wigged, sleep eyes, original clothing & tag.  Unsure how doll is marked possibly Petite Sally.

1930s Smiling Sally doll, 15"

1930 + American Character Sally doll, 12, 16 or 19" tall, all composition, molded hair with painted eyes or  wigged with sleep eyes, some dolls are unmarked others may be marked Petite or Sally a Petite Doll .  Note; several different head molds (molded painted hair or wigged), body types (composition or cloth combination), sizes of doll and eye colors, material (tin, celluloid, painted), open or closed mouth, were used for the Sally Joy doll over the years.  In other words there can be a bit of variation from doll to doll.

1930 Sally doll, 16"

1930 + American Character Sally Joy doll, 18-24" tall, composition shoulder plate head with cloth body, composition limbs, brown tin or celluloid sleep eyes, slight open smiling mouth, wigged, came with an extensive wardrobe of which some pieces have a label; A Lovable Petite Doll, Sally Joy, 18" doll marked Petite Sally or 24" doll marked Petite Amer. Character Doll Co.           

Photo courtesy of Flozdolz

1930 Sally Joy doll, 18"

1930 + American Character Carol Ann Beery doll, 13 or 16" tall, (used the closed mouth Sally head mold), all composition, had a braid that wrapped around the back crown of the head, was based on the child actress of the same name, doll marked Petite Sally.

1935 Carol Ann Berry doll, 13"

1936-1938 American Character Sally Jane doll or Paratex Girl doll, 15, 17, 19 & 22" tall, a Shirley Temple look-a-like, all paratex rubber jointed body,  human hair wig in braided pigtails, hazel sleep eyes, open smiling mouth with six upper teeth, dimples, wore an organdy dress, doll is unmarked.  Note:  Not entirely certain that this is the AC Sally Jane doll, however the doll is made of the all paratex rubber.

Photo courtesy of Nativelady

1936 Sally Jane doll, 15"

1942-1947 American Character Little Love doll, 15", 18-20" tall, Bye-Lo Baby or Tynie Baby look a like, composition flange head and hands, cloth body, cloth arms, cloth straight legs with tailored heels, molded painted brown hair, blue sleep eyes, crier, doll marked on head Am. Char. Doll.

1942 Little Love doll, 15"

1947 American Character Pre Sweet Sue doll,  17-18" all composition jointed doll, wigged, sleep eyes, real upper eyelashes, painted lower lashes, closed mouth, a Kathryn Grayson, Actress and Opera Singer, autographed doll was made from the Pre Sweet Sue doll mold, dolls are unmarked . 

See the full sized photo of the Pre Sweet Sue doll at the top of this page.

1947 Pre Sweet Sue doll,  17-18"

1950-1955 American Character Tiny Tears doll, 11 1/2, 13 1/2, 16 or 20" tall,  drink wet baby doll, rubber body with hard plastic head, molded painted hair or with a caracul wig, doll marked: American Character Doll Pat.

1956-1958 Tiny Tears (same sizes as above), now has saran rooted hair on a skull cap.  The 13 1/2" size also came as a black Tiny Tears doll.

1959-1961 Tiny Tears (same sizes as above), has a hard plastic head with a soft vinyl body molded hair with a saran rooted skull cap. 

1962-1968 17, 20 or 21" tall,  all vinyl body with accessories, doll marked: Am. Char., American Character and sometimes with the patent 2675644.

There were also 12" Teeny Tiny Tears dolls, 9" Teenie Weenie Tiny Tears dolls.

Ideal purchased the rights to Tiny Tears in 1968 and licensed the tears feature for their Betsy Wetsy doll.  Ideal reintroduced the Tiny Tears doll in 1982-1985 in both vinyl and bisque versions.  Regal of Canada also made a version of the Tiny Tears doll.

1950 Tiny Tears doll, 20"

with caracul wig

1951 American Character Sonny Boy doll, 18, 21, 23 & 27" tall, vinyl stuffed head with deeply molded light brown painted curls with bangs, (his face is narrower than Jimmy John), stuffed cloth body, stuffed vinyl limbs, blue sleep eyes, closed mouth, Mama crier in tummy, came dressed in red and blue checked buttoned on front vest, white shirt with blue and white bowtie, navy blue short pants, white socks and brown and white oxford shoes, doll mark AM. CHAR. or unmarked.

1952 Sonny was 20" tall wearing a snowsuit.  See also 1954 Jimmy John with similar molded hair but with a wider rounder face and one piece body.

1951 Sonny Boy doll, 18"

1951-1961 American Character Sweet Sue doll, 14, 15, 18-21, 24 and 31" tall, pre-teen type, all hard plastic doll, some were head turning walkers, most fully jointed some included bendable knees, flex ankles and elbows. Both Sweet Sue and Toni are often found in beautiful gowns of silk, satin or chiffon, were also featured as bride dolls, and there was a Groom version with a lambs wool wig dressed in a Tuxedo, doll marked: American Character Doll, Am. Char. Doll, Amer Char., A.C. or all sizes can be unmarked, as many are.

1952 Alice In Wonderland doll, 18" tall, Sweet Sue in a blue dress with white pinafore.

1954 Annie Oakley doll, 15-25" tall, Sweet Sue in a Annie Oakley outfit of green denim culottes, matching bolero, satin blouse and scarf, felt hat, holster with two guns, cowboy boots.

1955-1956 Life Size Sweet Sue doll, 24 and 31" tall.

1957 American Character Sweet Sue Sophisticate doll, 14 or 20" tall, fashion lady doll with high heel feet, jointed at the neck, shoulders, twist waist and hips, vinyl head with rooted hair, sleep eyes, closed painted mouth, pierced ears, came wearing fashionable clothing.

The Sweet Sue with Flexible Foot doll can wear either high heel shoes or flats, the 14" doll is unmarked , 20" doll marked:  American © Character .  See also the 1958 Toni doll who uses this same same head mold.

1953 Sweet Sue doll,

18" in Cotillion

1957 Sweet Sue Sophisticate doll,

20" in High Society outfit

1952 American Character I Love Lucy Lucille Ball doll,  28" tall, cloth doll with a hard plastic painted face, red bangs showing beneath her kerchief, big blue eyes, wearing her red and white striped blouse, an apron with "I Love Lucy" printed on it, with two heart shaped pockets and red peddle pusher pant, shown missing her head scarf.

1952 Lucille Ball doll, 28"

Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Ricky Jr. baby doll ad, 1953 photo on left.

1952 American Character I Love Lucy Baby Ricky Jr. doll, 14, 16" tall, hard plastic head and rubber body, drink wet baby doll, wore a long pink bathrobe, bonnet and panties, doll is unmarked, all the later dolls are marked on the head.

1953 American Character Baby Ricky Arnaz Jr. doll, 21" tall, all vinyl doll with molded hair and sleep eyes. Wore a yellow sun outfit with name embroidered on waist, doll mark AMER. CHAR. DOLL.

1954 Baby Ricky Arnaz Jr. doll, 17, 21" tall, all vinyl with rooted hair, wore shorts with suspenders in a hen print, white shirt with name embroidered and sandals,  doll mark AMER. CHAR. DOLL. 

1955 Baby Ricky Arnaz Jr. doll, 13, 17" tall, all vinyl with bendable legs that have wires, molded hair, sleep eyes. Wore corduroy pants with name embroidered on front and a striped shirt, doll mark AMER. CHAR. DOLL.

1955-1956 Baby Ricky Arnaz Jr. doll, 12 tall, all vinyl, straight legs, drink wet baby doll, wore white corduroy pants with name embroidery on front, doll mark AMER. CHAR. DOLL.

2nd Photo courtesy of Robin of Vintagelane.com

1953 Baby Ricky Jr. doll, 21"

1954 Baby Ricky Jr. doll, 21"

1952-1955 American Character Chuckles doll, 18-19, 22" tall, vinyl head and partial vinyl limbs,  oilcloth body open smiling mouth with upper teeth, sleep eyes, with a saran wig or had rooted hair as shown below, or deeply molded and painted hair, doll mark Amer Char. Doll .              

Photo on right is courtesy of Vintageonlyplease

1952-1955 Chuckles doll, 18" 

1952-1961 American Character Chuckles doll, several sizes, oilcloth baby bodies, vinyl head and partial vinyl limbs, open smiling mouth with upper teeth, sleep eyes, with rooted hair, doll mark Amer Char. Doll . 

American Character used the Chuckles name on several dolls, the earliest was an all composition doll in the 1930s.

1953 Chuckles doll, 19"

1955-1960s American Character Toodles doll, 19-30" tall, hard plastic multi-jointed body including the elbows and knees, rooted hair or molded hair, flirty sleep eyes, drink wet doll, open mouth, the 1960-1961 Little Girl Toodles doll has teeth with an open mouth.  Toodles can kneel, sit, play and assume 1,000 different positions.  Some rare early dolls are marked Toodles, others were marked: AM , Amer 9 , American Char . or unmarked.

1955-1959 Toodles Toddler doll, 19 1/2", 21, 24 tall, vinyl head, flirty eyes, with multi jointed body including elbows and knees; Toodles The Action Doll, Toodles with Poodle, Toodles with her three way Super Kart.

1959-1960 Teeny Toodles doll, 11" tall, all vinyl, molded or rooted hair, drink and wet, five piece jointed body.

See below for Toodles brother; 1959-1960 Tommy Toodles doll.

1958 Toodles doll, 19 1/2" tall

1954 American Character Jimmy John doll, 24" tall, stuffed vinyl head with deeply molded light brown painted hair with bangs, (his face is wider, rounder than Sonny Boy's), one piece rubber magic skin body and limbs, blue sleep eyes, has a Mama crier that makes a cooing noise when the tummy is pressed, closed mouth, Jimmy John came dressed in a red and white checked shirt, navy tie, navy blue short pants trimmed with red checked fabric, white socks and shoes.  Doll is marked AM. CHAR. or unmarked.

The Jimmy John doll may have been based on the character played by Jimmy John Wilson in the 1952 Cary Grant movie Room for One More or The Easy Way.  See also 1951 Sonny Boy with similar deep molded hair.

1954 Jimmy John doll, 24"

1955-1965 American Character Baby Sue doll, 12, 13, 17, 19, 21 or 23" tall, (there were four different faces used for this doll, one was hard plastic and the others were made of vinyl), all vinyl one piece baby body, vinyl head with rooted hair, legs have a wire so they can be posed, blue sleep eyes with real lashes, open mouth, wore a white nylon dress with pink & blue embroidery, bonnet, slip, panties, socks and white oilcloth shoes, doll marked on head  Amer Char Doll.

1957 Baby Sue doll, 17"

1957-1959 American Character Betsy McCall doll, 8, 14, 20, 22, 30, 36" tall, or her cousin Sandy McCall, 39" tall, all hard plastic and vinyl, socket head, rooted hair (39" tall Sandy McCall has molded hair), sleep eyes with lashes, closed mouth, doll marked McCall Corp in a circle, McCall 1958 or unmarked .  

See the Betsy McCall page for more details and other manufacturers.

1957 Betsy McCall doll, 8"

1958+ American Character Toni doll, 10, 14, 20 and 25" tall, Gillette advertising doll for Toni hair products, fashion lady doll with high heel feet, same face mold as Sweet Sue Sophisticate, similar body style with a slightly smaller bust line, jointed at neck, shoulders and hips, 25" size doll has a twist waist, these dolls came in beautiful 1950s style outfits. The Toni in the black taffeta jumper with embroidered white nylon blouse is called Cha Cha #A97 or High Society in 1960.

Earle Pullan also sold a similar doll, at least in the 24-25" size, it's unknown what Pullan named her.

1958 Toni doll, 10" 

1958-1959 American Character Eloise doll, 21" tall, all cloth doll, yarn hair, painted cloth face with smirking, one side upturned mouth, cartoon character who lived at the Plaza Hotel, NYC.

1958 Eloise Doll, 21"

1959 American Character Toodles Toddles doll, 19, 23-24 or 26" tall, vinyl head with rooted short curly hair or braids with curly bangs hair, flirty sleep eyes, real upper curly eyelashes, drink wet doll, open mouth, five piece plastic jointed body with straight legs, walker doll, doll came dressed in several different outfits, doll marked Amer. Char. Doll Corp. © 1960 .

Photo courtesy of rabmlt

1959 Toodles Toddles doll 24"

1959-1960 American Character Tommy Toodles doll, 22-23" tall, Toodles brother with lightly molded and brown painted hair, jointed five piece toddler body with straight legs, flirty sleep eyes with real brush eyelashes, drink wet doll, open mouth, dressed in a blue and white striped short sleeve shirt, blue suspended shorts, white rayon socks and white shoes, doll marked Amer. Char. Doll Corp. © .

Photo courtesy ebay seller littlemarz

1959-1960 Tommy Toodles doll, 22"

1960 American Character Whimsies dolls, character dolls, 22" tall, one piece vinyl body, rooted hair, very large eyes, dolls marked: Whimsies 1960 American Doll & Toy. Whimsies doll names are;  Bashful Bride, Dixie the Pixie, Fanny (Angel), Hedda Get Bedda (multi-face doll, with three faces), Hilda the Hillbilly, Lena the Cleaner, Miss Take, Monk, Polly the Lady Raggie, Simon, Strong Man, Suzie the Snoozie, Tillie the Talker, Wheeler Dealer,  Zack the Sack, Zero the Hero (football player).

1960 Suzie the Snoozie doll, 22"

1961 American Character Butterball doll, 19 or 23" tall,  soft vinyl Magi-form body, vinyl head and limbs, rooted blonde hair, blue sleep eyes, has a slight protruding lower lip, came in several different outfits, there was also a 14" girl doll named "Butterball" in 1965.  Doll marked  American Doll & Toy Co. 1961 .

1961 Butterball doll, 23"

1961 American Character Chuckles doll, 23" tall, all vinyl, toddler body, rooted hair, closed smiling mouth, doll shown is mint with her hang tag.  This doll while still bearing the Chuckles name does not resemble the earlier baby type dolls with their open mouths, so I guess this was meant to show a slightly older (toddler) Chuckles.  Doll marked on head Amer. Doll & Toy Co. 1961 © with in a circle.  This doll was sold only one year and is hard to find HTF.

1961 Chuckles doll, 23"

with a toddler body

1961 American Character Toodle-Loo doll, 17-18" tall, magic foam vinyl body, fully jointed, with rooted hair, doll mark 1961 American Doll & Toy Corp. on back of head.

1961 Toodle-Loo doll, 18"

1962-1964 American Character Little Miss Echo doll, 30" tall, hard plastic jointed body and vinyl head with rooted hair, blue sleep eyes, talker doll with battery operated tape recorder.  She is shown mint in her box with wrist tag and original clothes; white chiffon party dress with velvet bodice and lace trimmed short sleeves and neckline, white socks and black mary jane shoes.  She also came wearing a pink and white dress, doll marked on neck:  20 on the battery lid is: Pat. Pend. and if you open the lid inside is: 1 A 1 93 0405 .

1962-1964 Little Miss Echo doll, 30"

1963-1965 American Character Sally Says doll, 18-19" tall, 1st version, plastic and vinyl toddler doll who is a battery operated push button talker which says eleven different phrases, short rooted curly hair with bangs, sleep eyes, watermelon mouth, splayed fingers on hands, came wearing a white or yellow cotton high waisted dress with short sleeves, apron or red plaid jumper with white short sleeve shirt, white socks and black shoes, doll marked Amer. Char Doll 19©63 on head.

1964-1965 Sally Says, 17-18" tall,  2nd version, has a closed straight mouth and more generic face, shoulder length rooted blonde hair, sleep eyes, also a battery operated push button talker saying eleven phrases, came wearing a red, yellow or white cotton A-line dress with lace trimmed collar, white attached sleeves and lwhite ace panel insert on front of dress or a blue or yellow dress with bow and heart embroidered yoke.  Both dolls are marked Amer. Char Doll 19©63 on head.

1963 Sally Says doll #1, 19"

1963 American Character Babie Says doll, 17" tall, uses the Sally Says and Babie Babbles face mold, but also reminds us of the Butterball face too, spoke eleven different phrases, battery operated. Came in three different outfits; checked dress, organdy party dress or a polka dot dress.  Doll shown is not in her original clothing.  Doll marked Amer. Doll & Toy Corp.

1963 Babie Says doll, 17"

1963 American Character Babie Babbles doll, 23" tall, very similar to the Baby says doll, but has a stuffed cloth foam body with vinyl head and limbs, has a foam covered voice box that says phrases doll marked on head  Amer. Doll & Toy Corp .

1963 Babie Babble doll, 23"

1963 American Character Pre-Teen grow hair doll, 14" tall, all vinyl with jointed body, vinyl head with rooted hair, a button on dolls tummy allows the dolls hair to grow or retract, was only made in 1963, then was discontinued for the high heeled fashion doll Tressy.

1963 Pre-Teen grow hair doll, 14"

1963-1967 American  Character Tressy doll, 11 1/2" tall, high heeled teen fashion doll, plastic jointed body, vinyl head with rooted hair, painted facial features.

1965-67 American  Character Cricket or Toots doll, Tressy's sister, 9-9 1/2"" tall, marked: Amer. Char. Inc. 19©64 . 

1964 American Character Magic Makeup Tressy,  Black Magic Makeup Tressy and Mary Makeup dolls, Mary is Tressy's friend and does not have grow hair, all are 11 1/2" tall.

See the Tressy Doll & Family 1963-1967 for more details on all these dolls.

1963-1967 Tressy doll, 11 1/2"

1963 American Character Popi doll, 11 1/2" tall, the pop apart fashion model doll that came with three separate vinyl wigs and a cut and drape non sew dress, doll pops apart in three separate pieces, has molded red or orangish vinyl hair, white painted on swimsuit, white high heel open toe shoes, additional doll fashion kits (non sew) to make clothes for Popi were available separately.

1966 American Character Snip n' Tuck doll, is a mannequin Popi doll in a frame, with fabric and accessories for children to design and make their own non sew clothing.

1963 Popi doll, 11 1/2"

1966 American Character Pouting Penny doll, 13, 20, or 22" tall, toddler type doll, soft vinyl head with hair rooted into a skullcap, two faced; face changed to a happy or sad face, brown painted eyes, three painted upper corner eyelashes, jointed vinyl body at neck, shoulders and hips, non-head turning walker, doll marked: Amer. Char. Inc. 19©66.  

Part of American Character's Blue Ribbon doll line.

1966 Pouting Penny doll 13"

1966 American Character Tiny Whimsies dolls, 7 1/2" tall; Lites Out with nightgown, I'm Yours a Bride, Fly with Me a witch, Swing It a dancer, Love Me in red pantsuit and I'm Hooked a groom doll to go with the bride.

Also Tiny Whimsies dolls, 6" tall, Pixie, Swinger, Granny, Lites out, Minnie Mod, Jump'n, Go-Go.

1966 Tiny Whimsies Lites Out doll, 7 1/2"

1966 American Character Cartwright Family dolls, 8" tall, Ben, Hoss, Little Joe.  The Adam doll was used as the model for the outlaw figure (as his character had by now left the show) from the TV show Bonanza, solid vinyl, jointed body, molded clothes, dolls marked: C American Character.

1966 Ben and Hoss Cartwright dolls. 8"